Deuteronomy 30:19-20 NASB

"I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life an death, the blessing and the curse.  So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, by loving the LORD your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days..."

There are some who will walk away saying,  "It's too hard to be a Christian".  What they usually mean is, "I don't like what is being asked of me."  If there would have ever been cause for this kind of spirit, and they often thought there was cause, the children of Israel would have been at the front of the line.  God was asking everything of them when when He laid out His call to be a "holy" people.  But Moses wouldn't let them buy into any idea that the call was too hard.  He simply responded by saying, "For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach.  It is not in heaven, that you should say 'Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?'  Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?' But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it." The beauty of being God's children is that He never asks us to do anything unreasonable or unnecessary.  Nor does He tease us with things that will always be out of our reach because it's too hard.  He longs for us to know life abundantly and pours out on us the only way of life.  The idea that the commandments of God are too hard, or that God's way is way too hard on us, is a lie.  The commandments of God are to save us from the destructive path of our own way:  "for this is your life and the length of your days..."  With this perspective, the urgency of our prayer changes to, "Open my eyes, that I may behold wonderful things from Your law," (Psalm 119:18). Then we would join with the Psalmist in declaring, "I shall run the way of Your commandments, for You will enlarge my heart," (Psalm 119:32).  LORD, give me a big heart for your word and your ways!

Deuteronomy 30:1-3, 6, 10 NASB

"So it shall be when all these things have come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call them to mind in all nations where the LORD your God has banished you, and you return to the LORD your God and obey Him with all your heart and soul...then the LORD your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you...Moreover the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live... the LORD will again rejoice over you for good, just as He rejoiced over your fathers..."

There is something unbelievable about God.  Knowing the proneness and possibility of sin in His people, He moves way ahead of our sin to find a way to already mend the broken relationship. It's difficult for us to comprehend this kind of love that, though slapped in the face, will seek a way to make friendship possible again. God, like the father with the prodigal son, is always looking for our full return, full reconciliation and full restoration.  Then "The LORD will again rejoice over you for good..."  He knows that the broken relationship was the result of our sin, which is the turning of our face full toward self and away from Him.  Like a car that pulls to the right or left because it is out of alignment, so the soul will do with God.  Most of us are quick to get this kind of problem fixed in our car, not only because we don't want to fight it but also because we don't want to wreck it.  How much more should we seek to take care of this problem of the soul, in order that you may live?  Knowing this bent of the soul, and it's sad consequences, out of this incredible love of His, God seeks to change the condition of our heart so we won't do this to ourselves anymore.  That's exactly what He sets Himself to do, to transform us on the inside so we won't bring on ourselves our own death.  How is He going to do this?  Moses says,  "Moreover the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live."  Hold on to this truth.  This is where God is headed and He comes back to it over and over again.  Now you you'll know it when you see it!  This is God's most incredible promise and provision for every human soul, if they'll take it.  Will you take it?

Deuteronomy 28:1-2 NASB

"Now it shall be, if you will diligently obey the LORD your God, being careful to do all His commandments...the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.  And all thse blessings all come upon you and overtake you, if you will obey the LORD your God... But it shall come about, if you will not obey the LORD your God, to observe to do all His commandments...all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you."

How often have you heard a politician say, "Let me be perfectly clear", but you walk away saying, "Yea, I've heard that before," knowing they didn't really mean it?  Moses was not a politician using political languague to try to dupe or win the people.  In Deuteronomy he was saying, "Let me be perfectly clear" and he meant it to the core of his being.  Moses knew God's word was His bond and he pulls no punches in declaring strong truth.  Deuteronomy 27-30 are about as strong, straightforward and severe as any chapters you'll find in Scripture, meant to alarm every soul with the seriousness of His relationship with God.  This is not child's play, and Moses wanted the people to know that God meant it when He promised, "if you will diligently obey the LORD your God...all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you,"  but  also wanting them to know that God meant it when He warned, "if you will not obey the LORD your God...all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you."  Surely, this ought to remove any doubt about the folly of any careless or casual relationship with God.  He's just not that kind of God.  He's intense in holy love and He's intense in holy jealousy.  He is never unaffected by what man does or doesn't do.  He is never neutral about us nor ever lukewarm toward us.  His heart is a blazing fire of the pure emotion and full involvement of love. This is the love of a God who is almost "frantic", doing just about anything to protect His people from the destructive ways and wages of sin.  And He did do "just about anything" when, in His love for the world, "He gave His only begotten Son." 

That for a willful outcast such as I

The Father planned, the Saviour bled and died,

Redemption for a worthless slave to buy,

Who long had law and grace defied!

Such love, such wondrous love!

Such love, such wondrous love!

That God should love a sinner shuch as I,

How wonderful is love like this!

C. Bishop, c1929.  Renewed 1957 by Lillenas Publishing Co.

Deuternonomy 11:26-28 NASB

"See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse:  the blessing, if you listen to the commandments of the LORD your God...and the curse, if you do not listen to the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from the way which I am commanding you today..."

Some like to speak of the "unconditional love" of God as if it overlooked sin and secured a way of salvation no matter the character and conduct of the person. To these I would say, take a good look of the book of Deuteronomy.  Throughout this book, the blessings of God for the children of Israel are always conditional. Though it is evident that God's greatest desire is to bless His people, He has no room for a heart that is not given completely to Him, in word, thought and deed.  In Deuteronomy, with the children of Israel, the "curses" of God come certainly and severely on those who don't walk in His ways with all their heart.  We have become conditioned, through the preaching and Christian literature of the day, to believe that somehow "works" and "grace" are almost mutually exclusive.  We, of course, know we aren't saved by works, but the problem we face today is that we've been told that "forgiveness is all that matters." Untold numbers have been duped into finding comfort under this blanket, when the fruit is absent, retarded or rotten. There is no denying that the forgiveness of God is quickly available and gladly applied when sought with deep humility, contrition and repentance, but it is not cheap grace nor is it without divine expectations. Repentance itself speaks of a change of mind or a change of direction.  The whole tenor of God's grace has the clarion call of transformation in it, with words like redemption (deliverance), regeneration (new life), renewal (make new), refinement (purify).  This is a great grace because it transforms the heart and life.  This is a great blessing because it comes from the heart of a God who knows the difference and makes a difference, giving deep meaning and significance to the whole idea of God's blessing on a person's life.  This has nothing to do with earning salvation, but has everything to do with giving evidence of salvation.  Our world, right where we live, walk and talk, needs to see, hear and feel this evidence again.  Give them a taste of the fruit and let them see that it is good.

Deteronomy 11:22-24, 25 NASB

"For if you are careful to keep all this commandment which I am commanding you, to do it, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and hold fast to Him; then the LORD will drive out all these nations from before you, and you will dispossess nations greater and mightier than you.  Every place on which the soul of your foot shall tread shall be yours...There shall no man be able to stand before you..."

God loves to shower His people with promises. They come back to back to back throughout the book of Deuteronomy.  If there is anything we should know about God it's that He's just itching to bless His people.  If the children of Israel had stayed true to Him, they would have done incredible things and been invincible to this day.  God had promised them the world and more!  I still get this sense about God.  His word  says, "For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His," (II Chron. 16:9).  Perhaps we would again see great and mighty things from the hand of God if we would "love the LORD our God, walk in all His ways and hold fast to Him."  D.L. Moody said, "The world has yet to see what God can do with and for and through and in and by the man who is fully and wholly consecrated to Him."  Then Moody declared, "I will try my utmost to be that man."  What if we did the same?  What might we drive out?  What might we dispossess?  What territory might we take?  This doesn't come through some "leadership training seminars" or through reading "leadership books" or because of someone's "leadership abilities".  We have plenty of that around and it's getting us nowhere.  These things may have their place, but not at the front of the line.  This is solely the Mighty God, who knows the heart of every Christian, Church, and Christian organization and looks to see if we wait for Him with all our heart.  That's all God was asking of Joshua.  His all!  What would happen if we truly let Him be God?  I'm dying to know! 

Deuteronomy 11:18-21 NASB

"You shall therefore impress these words of mine on your heart and on your soul; and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontals on your forehead.  And you shall teach them to your sons, talking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up.  And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your sons may be multiplied on the land which the LORD swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens remain above the earth."

Many Orthodox Jews are very literal in practice, wearing and placing God's commandments as described in this passage, but, like many of us, often missing the point.  What God is getting at are two things:  "You shall therefore impress (lit., put) these words of mine on your heart and on your soul," and "you shall teach them to your sons, talking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up."  The other things mentioned are visual helps in making the point that His word must be the most important thing in our own lives and in the lives of our children.  I heard of a professor of Bible and Theology who said to his students at the beginning of the year, "I aim to bias you".  This same purpose needs to grip us with our children if we really believe God's word to be God's word.  We should aim to bias them toward truth. Children sense our heart language, and if the word of God isn't everything to us, they will follow our lead.  Someone teasingly accused my wife and me that, "You're kids are going to to heaven whether they like it or not."  They sensed our commitment and purpose in life and we wanted our children to sense the same.  The word of God was our compass or authority in life.  Friends, to lose the sense of God's word as authoritative in our lives is to lose our way in every way because we no longer have a moral compass.  All we have to do is look around us historically and presently, to understand that, with no moral compass, man is a mess. Israel proved this over and over again.  With His word, God has saved us from our own devices, bringing dignity and direction back into our lives.  Blessed is the home where the word of God is sown in the hearts through living it with the family,  reading it with the family,  talking it with the family and  walking it with the family .  That's what our text is saying.  Our children, in their growing up years, know if the word of God is just our formal creed or if it's truly a working creed.  They know if the word of God is our whole life or just an add on. This is a great responsibility, but we have a great God.  If you want to be blessed indeed, Immerse yourself in Him and take your children in with you.  They will follow your lead.

Deuteronomy 10:17-21 NASB

"For the LORD your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God who does not show partiality, nor take a bribe.  He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love to the alien by giving him food and clothing.  So show your love for the alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.  You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve Him and cling to Him, and you shall swear by His name.   He is your praise and He is your God, who has done these great and awesome things for you which your eyes have seen."


The wonderful truth of it all is that we know the same God that the children of Israel knew.  The playing field may be quite different, but not the One who orchestrates the plays.  He is still the God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God.  He has never been blinded by personalities.  Nor is this a God who can He be bribed through some maneuvering on our part.  He moves in a completely different sphere of what is important to the world, but He is very much in our world as One who is totally aware and involved in the affairs of man.  His heart is affected by what He sees and especially touched by human need.  If I could get across one point, it would be this:  that what touched God's heart then, touches God's heart now.  He cares about those who are often overlooked, identified here as orphans, widows and aliens, and He tells us to do the same, executing justice and showing love.  I think He meant it!  Both of these acts, justice and love, are acts of the heart, as beating with the very heart of God.  This is a disposition far deeper than mere humanitarian concern or human help.  Far different than the world, this gets to real issues, root causes and redeeming cures.This isn't something one can put on.  At least not for very long.  The idea of short term mission involvement didn't originate with God.  Missions is a lifetime cause, whether in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, or the ends of the earth, but the only way that can happen is if our hearts have been transformed by the heart of God, so that we truly love as God loves.  So how's your heart?  Any orphans, widows and aliens in view?  If you really care but don't know where to connect, there are Christian organizations who are reaching out to those in need.  Connect with them.  Certainly, an organization like World Gospel Mission can be of help.  I like to think of ourselves, not "like a bridge over troubled waters", but as "a bridge to troubled waters.  Let us take your hand, and let God take you where few dare to go.  This is where the adventure of the Christian life gets real interesting because here the God who does great and awesome things, does great and awesome things!

Deuteronomy 8:3 NASB

"And He humbled you and let you be hungry, and fed you with manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you understand that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD."

We are a generation of those who struggle with "unanswered questions" about our circumstances, always wanting a reason for what we're going through.  Many hold God hostage to their demands for some kind of response, believing they have a right to know.  Not hearing anything, they feel entitled to embrace disappointment and doubt as to God's goodness and "godness".  Out of concern, well meaning souls will try to come up with some answers to this kind of questioning about God's character.  Trying to "protect" His name, their responses begin to sound much like disclaimers you hear on television with certain medicine advertisements, which speak of the great things a particular medicine can do, but then give a long list of possible side effects to cover malpractice suites.  This line, of trying to explain God, and trying to explain everything that happens to us in life, has only pulled God down to our level of thinking, making Him out to be Someone that means well but doesn't always come through like we thought so therefore must be protected from "malpractice" questions.  But God needs no protection, nor does He have to explain everything that happens to us!  Without sounding hard and uncaring, for God cares at a much deeper level than most comprehend or want to accept, God is not all that fired up concerned about our circumstances, which are temporal. Certainly He cares, but because He knows how pitifully puny anything else is in comparison, He cares above all about the character of the soul no matter the circumstances, or even because of the circumstances.  And the character of the soul is determined by the voice that dominates the soul.  Is it the voice of self interest?  Then our thinking will be all about self.  Is it the voice of the world.  Then our thinking will be all about this world.  Or is it the voice of God?  Then our thinking rises to a different level. We see now from a different perspective. Here more important things take precedence.  This is a huge shift of the soul.  When Satan tempted Jesus along the line of His physical, material and social well being, Jesus stood by this old truth out of Deuteronomy 8:3:  "man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD."  Profound!  He saw all that mattered and It held Him.  It will hold you too!

Deuteronomy 7:17-18, 21 NASB

"If you should say in your heart, 'These nations are greater than I; how can I dispossess them?'  You shall not be afraid of them... You shall not dread them, for the LORD your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God."

With the constant barrage of negative news that comes to us these days, it is easy to have, like an ongoing low grade fever, a fear that may not be debilitating but is depleting us of spiritual life and vitality.  We can worry about wars and rumors of wars.  We  can worry about a struggling economy.  We can worry about  unfavorable politicians.  We can worry about the plagues of our society.  And, if we throw in our own personal problems, the list can go on and on, if we let it.  God is saying, "Don't be afraid of them! "Don't dread them!"  Dear believer, remember "The LORD your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God!"  Know Him!  Look to Him!  He is not shaken by any of these things, but He cares about you.  Remember what Peter wrote? "Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you?"  (I Peter 5:7).  We need to believe this again for this day, for it's still true.  We can rest from our feverish ways, knowing God will bring us through safely. This brings to my mind a poem my grandfather, Hubert Mardock wrote long ago, but still relevant today.  I leave it with you and pray you will take it to heart.

Lone mariner, why do you row?

You are no match for winds that blow,

Nor yet can stem the undertow.

Bravely you have faced the gale,

You've plied the oar and spread the sail,

But hope grows faint, and strength doth fail.

Drop anchor till the storm is past.

For trouble will not always last,

Nor skies be always overcast.

Look up, though trials tempt you sore,

The tide will turn and what is more,

Will land you safely on the shore.

Deuteronomy 7:9 NASB

"Know therefore that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments..."

God is not restrained in His love toward His people.  He wants to pour out His blessings on those who are not restrained in their love toward Him.  This kind of love relationship is so precious that He doesn't give it indifferently or indiscriminately.  This covenant love is given to those who "love Him and keep His commandments."  Those are the conditions, but look at the compensation:  His extreme and extravagant lovingkindness!  It is a false comfort to try to put oneself under the umbrella of "God so loved the world" as our protection from the God who will  one day judge the world, if we have not entered into this covenant love.  Though not to many people's liking, the "but" that follows our text is just as promising as our text:  "but [God] repays those who hate (don't love) Him to their faces, to destroy them;  He will not delay with him who hates Him, He will repay him to his face," (7:10)  Covenant love is always a two way relationship which expresses itself in the full giving of oneself to the other.  Do you know this kind of love?  You can!  There is nothing more beautiful!  There is nothing more blessed! 

Deuteronomy 6:4-5 NASB

"Hear, O Israel!  The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!  And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might."

Without a doubt, this calling to "all" is a major theme in the book of Deuteronomy, and is affirmed by Jesus as "The greatest commandment".  In other words, when it came to the commandments, this was overall, without which there would be no keeping of any of the commandments of God because God knew that obedience was not a matter of the will alone, but a matter of the heart and soul:  Oh, that [this people] had such a heart in them, that they would fear Me, and keep all My commandments always," (Deut. 5:29).  This call of God was huge, running like the Amazon River through the whole book of Deuteronomy:

• "You shall walk in all the way which the LORD your God has commanded you, that you may live," (5:33).
• "keep all His statutes and His commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life," (6:2).
• "And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may be well with you," (6:18).
• "Therefore, you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God to walk in His ways and to fear Him," (8:6).
• "And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require from you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul," (10:12).
• "You shall therefore love the Lord your God, and always keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments," (11:1)
• "And it shall come about, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love the LORD your God, and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul, that He will give the rain for your land in its season," (11:13-14).
• "For if you are careful to keep all this commandment which I am commanding you, to do it, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and hold fast to Him; then the LORD will drive out all these nations from before you..." (11:22-23).
• "the LORD your God is testing you to find out if you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.  You shall follow the LORD your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him," (13:3-4).
• "obey (lit., "listen to His voice") Him with all your heart and soul..." (30:2)
• Moreover the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live," (30:6).
• "turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and soul," (30:10).
• "So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, by loving the LORD your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him," (30:19-20).

The call of God, as in any marriage relationship, is to 100% faithfulness, love and purity.  If in pre-marital counseling, one baulked at this high calling, the best counsel to the other would be "Run!"  Marriage has a right to demand 100% and, in fact, it necessitates 100% to not only be healthy, but survive. Anything less is a farce and we all know it.  How can we expect anything less than this in our relationship with God?  He doesn't!  Is this a yoke too hard to bear?  Ask someone who is in love.  They would laugh at anything less. To this person, this calling is the joy, delight and expectancy that gives meaning, dignity and hope to the relationship.  God raises the level of "this holy relationship" to "All!"  Who wouldn't want that?

Deuteronomy 4:9-10, 20, 24, 35, 39 NASB

"Give heed to yourself and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things which your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life...make them known to your sons and your grandsons.  Remember the day you stood before the LORD your God, at Horeb... For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God... The LORD has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, from Egypt, to be a people for His own possession... To you it was shown that you might know that the LORD, He is God; there is no other besides Him... Know therefore today, and take it to your heart, that the LORD, He is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other. So you shall keep His statutes and His commandments...that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may live long on the land which the LORD your God is giving you..."

When they were little, our three girls enjoyed stories and were always begging us to read or tell another again and again and again.  We're reliving this age of delightful wonder and repetition with our grandchildren.  Story telling is a basic means of learning, transmission and entertainment in many cultures, as it was in Bible days, and the book of Deuteronomy is just that--a retelling or recounting of the story we read in Exodus, Numbers and Leviticus.  But in the retelling, there are some fascinating details that are woven into the familiar story, that give us pause and cause for thought. After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the children of those who baulked at Kedesh-Barnea are now the next in line and they are at a border again, but this time eager and ready to enter into the land God has promised.  Moses, with concern, is preparing their hearts by recounting all that has gone before, warning them not to follow in the footsteps of their parents but to trust God's promise, urging them to move in full commitment and obedience all the days of their life. Like the sound of a constant drumbeat, Moses is urgently drumming God's words into their minds and hearts, with the main theme being "See, I (the LORD) have placed the land before you; go in and possess the land...  Go in and possess the land...  Go in and possess the land...  Go in and possess the land..."  With the care and concern of one who had watched over a rebellious people, Moses pleads with these who would now carry the torch to remember the LORD their God.  We can ill afford to take the LORD and the things of the LORD lightly.  Remember His words.  Remember His works.  Remember His ways.   He has put all of Himself into our lives.  Can we do anything less than pour all of ourselves into His?  Pure love demands it, and there is nothing more full of fire than pure love:  "For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God."  With God, it's all or nothing.  There can be no rivals. This is radical love!  This is "perfect" love! This is the way it ought to be.  This is the way God intended it to be.  This is the way it can be! Go in and possess the land God has given to His people! 

Deuternomomy 4:7 NASB

"For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as is the LORD our God whenever we call on Him?  Or what nation is there that has statutes and judgments as righteous as this whole law which I am setting before you today?"


Think about it.  In a world where many would try to say all worship the same god, we have every right in the world to react.  We have every right in the world to declare with emotion and confidence that "the LORD, He is God; there is no other besides Him," (Deut. 4:35). To allow for any other god would be to mock the God who "out of the heavens...let you hear His voice,"  (4:36).  It would be to make Him like the gods who cannot speak, cannot hear, cannot see and cannot save.  Here we must boldly stand.  Not blindly.  Boldly!  Boldly because this God has declared and demonstrated His Person, His Presence, His Precepts, His Place and His Power.  When Moses  asked, "for what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty acts as Yours? (3:24).  "Or has a god tried to go to take for himself a nation from within another nation by trials, by signs and wonders and by war and by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm and by great terrors, as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? (4:34), the answer was a clear "No other god, but our God!"  The Children of Israel didn't have to wonder. They knew.  Nor do we have to wonder. Anyone who has had opportunity to travel to other parts of the world has seen the evidence of His mighty Presence and Power. His church is moving forward.  He is still showing Himself strong to redeem a people from among the nations.  And He comes to us today.  We can know and feel the same reality of what the children knew long ago when asked, "For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as is the LORD our God whenever we call on Him?"  Call on Him my friend!  He is not a God afar off, but near to each of us.  Hold strong to a God like this.  There is none other. 

Numbers 33:53 NASB

"...and you shall take possession of the land and live in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it."


God's possession of the heart is always a clean sweep.  He will have no contenders.  But the most amazing and most appealing thing about God is that though He demands 100%, He never forces us into anything to get it. He always invites, engaging our will and never doing anything in us we can't help.  He refuses to let us enter into any of His land without the decision, determination and demonstration on our part to take full possession, without compromise. This was the challenge God put before Israel, saying, "When you cross over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their figured stones, and destroy all their molten images and demolish all their high places; and you shall take possession of the land and live in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it," (Numbers 33:51-53).  The promises of God are one thing.  Taking possession is another thing.  The promises reveal the God who is for us. Taking possession reveals the man who is for God.  When these two wills come together in holy purpose, all the power of the promises of God for our souls are ours.  God's promises are yours. Don't miss out on the fruit of the land.  Take possession and live in it! 

Numbers 23:19-20; 25:17 NASB

"God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it?  Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Behold, I have received a command to bless; When He has blessed, then I cannot revoke it... A star shall come from Jacob, and a scepter shall rise from Israel..."

This is a most interesting piece of scripture, coming from the mouth of one the most unassuming of God's mouthpieces, unless it was the donkey that God used to speak to this man. But I think that would be demeaning to the donkey.  Balaam was something like a "witch doctor" whom Balak, king of Moab, because of his fear of Israel's strength and forward progress, sought out to put a curse on Israel.  But God interfered, telling Balaam not to curse the people; "for they are blessed" (Numbers 22:12).  So, as the story unfolds, no matter how much Balak tried to bribe Balaam to curse Israel, Balaam would only bless them.  This made Balak extremely angry, but, even against this, Balaam, who was under "God's control", declared a profound truth, saying, "God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it?  Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Behold, I have received a command to bless; When He has blessed, then I cannot revoke it.  ...A star shall come from Jacob, and a scepter shall rise from Israel..."  Listen, dear follower of Christ, God has put His blessing on you and, no matter what Satan tries to do to "curse" you, God is greater.  He has blessed and no one can revoke it!  Then, to top it off, God prophecies through Balaam that "A star shall come from Jacob, and a scepter shall rise from Israel."  With clear Messianic overtones, this promise is the nail in Satan's coffin.  Stay in there until the last chapter!  It's a humdinger!

Numbers 21:8 NASB

"Then the LORD said to Moses, 'Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he shall live."

There's an old revival hymn that has a phrase that says, "Look and live, my brother live!"  This is the basic call of salvation, just simply "Look and live!"  This thought comes from a terrible incident with the children of Israel in the Sinai wilderness, found in Numbers 21:4-9.  They had become impatient with the journey and spoke against God and Moses, complaining about their circumstances.  Never a smart move, but God used it to bring into the picture a greater picture, making a profound statement about sin and giving to the world a a prophetic symbol of salvation.  Poisonous serpents came into the camp, biting the people, and many were dying.  They cried out to Moses to intercede on their behalf, and the LORD told him to "make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live."  Incredible!  Look at what this means!  Jesus picked this up, as we find it in John 3:14-15, and uses it in reference to Himself, saying, "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life."  Let's remember this friends, sin is never a small thing.  It's our sin that put Jesus on the cross.  It's His great salvation that held Him to the cross.  Without lessening the seriousness of the sin, Jesus just simply said, "Look and live!"  He has the power to free us from the "bite" and "poison" of sin in our lives and to give us life abundantly, in this life!  No wonder believers sing! Charles Wesley, moved by this incredible heart of God, penned these words:

And can it be, that I should gain
An interest in the Saviour's blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! how can it be
That Thou, my God, shoulds't die for me?

'Tis mystery all! The Immortal dies:
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the first-born seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
'Tis mercy all! let earth adore,
Let angel minds inquire no more.

He left His Father's throne above,
So free, so infinite His grace,
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam's helpless race:
'Tis mercy all, immense and free;
For, O my God, it found out me!

Long my imprisoned spirit lay
Fast bound in sin and nature's night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray,
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth and followed Thee.

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine!
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach the eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.

Numbers 14:24 NASB

"But My servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land which he entered, and his descendants shall take possession of it."

"Are we there yet?"  This seems to be a universal question among children starting a long journey, asked not once, but multiple times along the way.  Destination is something very basic to life.  From the day of birth, all of us are locked into destinations, the ultimate, of course, being death itself.  God is keen on destinations in our lives.  Israel's journey from Egypt to Canaan illustrates this so clearly.  He knows where He wants to get us and gives full attention to His purpose for us.  But Israel baulked, giving what they considered to be "reasonable" excuses for not entering in to the promised land, the biggest reason being, "It's a land that devours its inhabitants; and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great size...we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight," (Numbers 13:32-33).  Building this "reason" up in their minds, they made it "the great impossible" and forfeited God's promise and purpose. These are promises and purposes which are always possible because, with God, nothing is impossible.  But there were two men who didn't buy into the popular thinking that was going on with the Children of Israel.  Their names were Joshua and Caleb, men renowned in God's great story with His people.  Why?  Because as the LORD said concerning His "servant" Caleb: "he has a different spirit and has followed Me fully." And then the LORD declares, "I will bring [him] into the land...and his descendants shall take possession of it."  Just because some don't believe in divine possibilities, doesn't change God's purpose for His people.  If some won't, He will find those who will.  This particular generation of Israelites would wander around in the wilderness for another 40 years and would all die there, except for Joshua and Caleb who would lead the next generation into God's promises.  May God make us truly His "servants" who have "a different spirit" and "follow Him fully".  Perhaps you will contradict popular thinking and popular theology, but you know God has "destinations" for His people and you stick to that purpose of God with a faith that says, YES HE CAN!   These are those whom God can use to lead others into His destinations for the soul.  Who knows who you might influence to greater heights. There is way too much wandering around in the wilderness these days.  Stand apart, stay the course, and set your eye on His destinations for the soul.

Numbers 11:23 NASB

"Is the LORD's power limited?  Now you shall see whether My word will come true for you or not."

Have you ever gotten your way by whining and crying?  What parent hasn't dealt with this with their children?  None of us like to see it, yet so often we do this with God.  Be careful with this kind of attitude.  You may get more than you bargained for.  As the children of Israel "endured" the difficulties of the wilderness, which was not a walk in the park, there were things that they especially began to miss about Egypt.  One was meat.  They had had their fill of the miracle of manna and, the writer records that, "...the rabble who were among them had greedy desires; and also the sons of Israel wept again and said, 'Who will give us meat to eat?'  We remember the fish which we used to eat free in Egypt, the cucumbers and the melons and the leeks and the onions and the garlic, but now our appetite is gone.  There is nothing at all to look at except this manna,'" (Numbers 11:4-6).  Upon hearing this "weeping", the writer says, "the anger of the LORD was kindled greatly," (11:10).  Among some things God cannot stand, at the top of the list are murmuring and complaining, and, clear into the NT, He speaks strongly against this poison.  He knows it has the power to influence others negatively, carrying in it a venom that challenges God's will and ability.  It says, "I could do this better."  Amazingly, there is a powerful truth that comes out of this scenario, best known under more positive circumstances, but, nevertheless, no less true.  Reacting to this kind of spirit, God told Moses to tell the people, "...the LORD will give you meat and you shall eat... not one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days, but a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the LORD who is among you and have wept before Him, saying 'Why did we ever leave Egypt?'" (11:19-20).  Even Moses was a bit incredulous.  He said to the LORD, "The people...are 600,000... Should flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to be sufficient for them?  Or should all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to be sufficient for them?" (11:21-22).  Then the LORD said to Moses, "Is the LORD's power limited?  Now you shall see whether My word will come true for you or not," (11:23).  To be sure, His word came true alright, but it wasn't with His blessing.  Only with His power.  God brought quail in with a strong wind, in over abundance, but the people suffered greatly for their foul (no pun intended) spirit.  No, the LORD's power is not limited, but don't seek His power without His blessing.  Seek first the blessing of His Presence, and then, always remember, His power will be sufficient for real need.  Which should never be confused with our wants. 

Numbers 6:22-27 NASB

"Thus you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:  'The Lord bless you, and keep you; the LORD make His face shine on you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.' So they shall invoke My name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless then will I bless them."


"Rain, rain, go away.  Come again some other day."  That's what we used to chant as kids when it was raining on "our party".  We really gave no thought to what that rain might mean to a dry and thirsty land. Then it was all about self.  Are we any different now?  A favorite church hymn over the years was,  "There Shall Be Showers of Blessing,"  sung with hope and delight by many who longed for the blessings of His presence.  And, the truth of the matter is, God's blessings are not without God's presence.  In fact , God's blessing is His Presence!  Sadly, many of us shy away from this Presence because we're not sure we want this kind of interaction and influence on "our party".  Certainly, it would change the atmosphere of the "party".  For one, we might have to think what this might mean to "a dry and thirsty land" rather than just "our party".  So the question is, "do we really want showers of blessing?" If you do, get ready for the Presence of God in every aspect of your life, and through your life.  Harry Jessop wrote a book entitled, I Met a Man with A shining Face, indicating that someone living in the holy presence of God, was visibly affected by that Presence.  As a result, his countenance touched Jessop's life. As a people who were raised up to bless the nations, surely this is what the LORD was wanting in the blessing Aaron was to give to Israel: "Thus you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:  'The Lord bless you, and keep you; the LORD make His face shine on you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.'  So they shall invoke My name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless them."  The only way God's face can shine on anyone is for their face to be turned fully toward Him. This  is reversing what happened in the Garden of Eden, "when Adam and Eve," as Dr. Dennis Kinlaw describes, "who had full face toward God, turned their face fully toward self."  "This," Kinlaw states, "is the essence of sin--full face toward self." The blessing God is talking about is one of full face toward God again, which is the beauty of the language in Aaron's blessing to the people:  "The LORD make His face shine on you... the LORD lift up His countenance on you."  What a wonderful possibility!  Could this be what Stephen's persecutors saw when they "saw his face like the face of an angel"? (Acts 6:15). His Presence should change our countenance because He changes our character! Think of what this would mean to the world! There is no greater blessing!

Leviticus 19:2; 20:26 NASB

"You are to be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy."

For some who have tried to read through the Bible in one year, the book of Leviticus can be one of the most tedious of all the books.  Without wanting to take away from the meaning of the details involved in the various laws described, I think this book could almost be summarized in one sentence:  "You are to be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy,".  This calling stands out like a corner stone to everything else in the book.  How different than much of what is being said today in statements like  "No one can be holy."  Perhaps because of its correlation to the word "holy", there is a similar reaction to the word "perfect", with statements like "Nobody's perfect", or "Not perfect, just forgiven."  Though there are some very honest questions about the meaning of these words, as used in Scripture, many times these statements are used simply as an excuse for poor spiritual living, as in "don't expect too much from me."  Tragically, because they have become such a part of many people's thinking and belief system, these statements tend to keep some from a higher calling and divine expectations.  The concern, of course, is the Scripture often, and straightforwardly, uses these words, therefore there is cause to wonder if God might have some expectations beyond what some would like or think. Perhaps there is more promise in them than we have dared allow.  Peter certainly must have thought so when, quoting directly out of Leviticus, he wrote, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy,;" (I Peter 1:15).  And it is interesting, as Dr. William Coker has noted, that "the word holy," as Peter used it, "with both God and man, is the very same word in the Greek language."  Could it be that the challenge for each of us is to begin to look at this as a promise rather than a problem, then maybe we will again mine its richness. And maybe, just maybe, there could be another serious soul who, like John Wesley, would challenge some of the  "thinking" and "belief systems" of our day and make a profound contribution to this poor world's low level of thinking.  Grant it O Lord!

Exodus 40:34-38 NASB

"Then the Lord covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle...and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.  And throughout all their journeys whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel would set out; but if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day when it was taken up.  For throughout all their journeys, the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel,"


I love this passage of Scripture!  It was the crowning presence of God over all that Israel had done to build the Tabernacle and all that was in it. Do you know the daily presence of the Lord, directing your comings and goings?  How are you most aware?  Where do you feel His presence the most?  Is it through your  daily "alone" time with Him ?  I hope you do this.  It's vital to heart life.  Is it in your service to special needs in your community?  Jesus said, "As much as you've done it to the least of these, you've done it to me"--there you'll see Me!  Find your Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and ends of the earth ministries.  It will keep your heart warm with Divine fire.  Do you feel God's presence in a special way when you worship with your family at your family altar?  So many have let this opportunity go by the wayside.  Don't give this up and don't give up on this.  God loves family time.  Your children need this.  You need this. He meets with those who meet with Him.  Or perhaps you feel God most near when you worship with others of like mind and heart.  May God fill your church community with His gracious presence.  We all need this!  Wherever you are, and whatever you do, God wants to be there with you, all the time.  We may not have "the cloud of the Lord" over us as did the children of Israel, but it's the same Presence. Make sure you have His Presence all along the way.